Kofi Ampeah Woode
The Ghana Armed Forces Command and Staff College (GAFCSC) has graduated seventy-six African military Officers, for its Eightieth 80th Junior Staff Course ‘jsc’, to help them perform staff functions, after developing their leadership, analytical and communication skills, while providing the foundation for their subsequent career development.
The graduation ceremony of the Junior Division of GAFCSC, was held at the Hamidu Hall of the Military College, on Friday 15 December, 2023, with Nana Ehunabobrim Prah Agyensaim VI – President of the Owirenkyi Traditional Council, in Ghana, as the Guest of Honour.
The Guest of Honour, describing the course as a getaway for the participants to expand their horizons in professional knowledge and gain broader perspectives on national and global affairs, said the insights the graduates have acquired, positions them to navigate and address the complex challenges that lie ahead in their careers.
He said the training is a critical phase in their professional growth, in a world fraught with threats to peace, ranging from terrorism to natural disasters, and that it is crucial that they leverage their new-found knowledge and skills, to understand and mitigate such threats, and to maintain a proactive stance, ready to confront and overcome any challenge that may arise.
To the Ghanaian graduates, Nana Prah Agyensaim said, as GAF plays a key role in domestic security operations, often interacting with civilian entities, it is imperative for its officers to understand the importance of robust civil-military relations in resolving security challenges, and to foster good relationships with the utmost professionalism, in constant remembrance of their dual role as “civilians in military service”.
To the Officers from outside Ghana, the acclaimed traditional ruler cum Barrister at Law, Solicitor of Ghana’s Supreme Court, and a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Administration and Management Consult of Ghana, said their participation in the 19-week course symbolizes the shared commitment to continental unity.
A report on the Junior Division of the College for the Second Half of the Training Year 2023, by the Assistant Commandant, Junior Division, GAFCSC – Brigadier General (Brig Gen) Albert Kwadwo Dawohoso, said Course 80 assembled on 28 July 2023 and commenced lectures on 31 July 2023.
Breakdown of the 76 students is as follows: one from The Gambia, two from Liberia, three from Botswana, two from Sierra Leone, eleven from Nigeria, and 57 from the Ghana Army, Ghana Navy and Ghana Air Force.
Only students who are able to prove their ability and meet the Course standards, are awarded the symbol ‘jsc’, which signifies that the graduand has passed the Junior Staff Course – an achievement that compares favourably with similar standards of militaries around the world.
There was an experiential study with an Environmental Study Tour to the Bono and Ahafo Administrative Regions of Ghana, to conduct research into some existing challenges to the development of these regions, which covered 6 thematic areas, with the selection of the themes done in consultation with Ghana’s Ministry of Local Government.
The tour specifically looked at: Protection of the forest reserves in the Ahafo Region; Curbing the menace of illegal small scale mining, popularly known as ‘Galamsey’; Examining the efforts of the Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs), and other stakeholders in the Ahafo Region, in dealing with the waste management crisis in the region;
The other areas of the study were: Promoting access to quality female Science, Engineering, Technology and Mathematics (STEM) education to ensure effective and efficient delivery of education in the Bono Region; Measures adopted by the Bono Regional Coordinating Council and MMDAs to curb smuggling in the Bono Region and; Impact of chieftaincy disputes on the socio-economic growth and development of the Bono Region.
Most of the non-military lectures on national and international issues of the Course were handled by lecturers from the University of Ghana, Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration, some state agencies, sister security services and some public and private organisations.
There was also an Internal Security and Counter Insurgency phase, which culminated into the final exercise codenamed “Exercise OMBUDSMAN”, which had participation from the Ghana Prisons Service, Ghana Fire Service, Ghana Immigration Service, Customs Division of the Ghana Revenue Authority, the Narcotics Control Commission, National Security Secretariat and the National Investigations Bureau, for a 2 week period.
At the awards; OVERALL BEST Student went to Major (Maj) Patrick Peprah Obuobi; 2ND BEST to Maj Patience Naa Ayorkor Badger; 3RD BEST to Captain (Capt) Courage Dzidakpo Gbedzi; BEST ALLIED to Flight Lieutenant (Flt Lt) David Dickson Dillimono; BEST ASSISTANT COMMANDANT’S PAPER to Maj PP Obuobi; 2ND BEST to Maj PNA Badger;
3RD BEST went to Capt Ashal Danhalidu Muhammad; EVERARD AWARD to Squadron Leader Samuel Gyan Oppong; BEST FEMALE to Maj PNA Badger, and; Syndicate 6 won BEST LEADERSHIP CASE STUDY PRESENTATION.
Dignitaries present at the graduation included the Commandant, GAFCSC – Major General Bismarck Kwasi Onwona; Deputy Commandant – Brig Gen Seidu Abass; Acting Assistant Commandant Senior Division – Colonel (Col) William Kwabiah; Representatives of GAF’s Service Chiefs; Director General, Department of Training (General Headquarters) – Brig Gen Winfred Dzandu-Hedidor; Dean and Academic Staff, Chief Coordinator, Directors and Chief Instructors.
By Kofi Ampeah-Woode
